China has created a fast electric car charger with wires made of liquid metal – the current literally flows through the hoses

A group of scientists from China Agricultural University have developed and tested an unusual high-power charging station for electric vehicles. Instead of power cables with a rigid core made of copper or other metal, the scientists used hollow pipes through which liquid metal was supplied. This solved the problem of heat dissipation when transmitting high currents to batteries, which will help speed up the charging of powerful electric vehicles.

Image source: Engineering 2025

To implement the project, the researchers developed a connector for connecting to the battery of an electric vehicle and a system for feeding it with a liquid metal alloy based on gallium. The metal is fed using a pump that operates on the principle of electromagnetic induction. The feed rate and degree of cooling are regulated in the column with the charging device, which allows you to control the heating of the charging cable.

The use of liquid metal as a conductive material and, at the same time, a means of heat dissipation will make it possible to create compact but powerful charging devices that will be increasingly in demand in the electric transport industry.

Experiments with a prototype of a liquid metal charging cable showed the solution to be highly reliable even when the wires were twisted and folded. The hose-wire with gallium circulating in it could withstand a bending radius of up to 2 cm. It transmitted a current of 1000 A and heated up to only 54.3 °C above the ambient temperature.

This new co-cooling and charging strategy represents a significant advance in heat management at ultra-high loads. It could enable simple, robust, and lightweight high-power charging systems. Although still in the research phase, it opens up new possibilities for the EV industry, potentially accelerating mass adoption.